Battlefield Developers Say They're Not Going Casual

DICE will focus on hardcore titles

A casual title doesn't mean a new direction for DICE

A lot of developers have created their own identity through the games they made. Such is the case with Digital Illusions CE, or DICE as it is known to fans, the creator of the famous Battlefield shooter franchise and, more recently, Mirror's Edge. The Electronic Arts-owned company has just announced two new titles, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, the follow-up to a very successful console-only title, and Battlefield 1943, a mini-sequel to 1942, which was launched a few years ago.

While fans are still very confident in the team, considering Battlefield: Heroes, a free-to-play online shooter that aims at a more amusing side to battles, and the “entry-level shooter” that will be 1943, some people have been concerned that DICE will transform in a more casual gamer-oriented studio.

But this isn't true, says Patrick Liu, a producer at the studio. He recently talked with Videogamer and went on to reinstate the commitment that DICE had with hardcore gamers. He said that, although it might seem like the games would be a bit more simple, they would aim at a broader market, not only the die-hard shooter fans who knew everything there was to know about the Battlefield series of games.

We are definitely still making PC games, we've not forgotten about that,” Liu said. “1943 is announced for PC. Bad Company 2 is announced for the PC, so obviously we got the engine (Frostbite) running on PC. We just recently released Mirror's Edge on PC as well. I would say that we will continue to do what we are best at. We are not going casual, just because that is the trend. We're not good at that. It's not our core focus for the studio.”

Liu also went on to tease the people who said that DICE wasn't listening to its fan base and hinted at some very big projects that we would see from the studio in the future. “I feel a little sad sometimes when people say they're lazy or they're not listening to the fans. Yes of course we keep track of what the forums are saying. I can't say anything really, but we have plans. Definitely big plans. The fans don't need to worry.”

It's quite nice to hear that studios such as DICE take time to emphasize their commitment to hardcore gamers as, although the casual market is bigger and more profitable, let's not forget that video games weren't always as mainstream as they are now. Here's hoping that DICE will continue to deliver the great titles it has gotten us accustomed to.